Description
Book SynopsisHow do voters make decisions in low-information elections? How distinctive are these voting decisions? Traditional approaches to the study of voting and elections often fail to address these questions by ignoring other elections taking place simultaneously. In this groundbreaking book, Stephen Nicholson shows how issue agendas shaped by state ballo
Trade Review"Stephen Nicholson's provocative book provides a solid theoretical foundation to explain the role that ballot measures have in setting the agenda and influencing vote choice in candidate races."--Daniel A. Smith, Political Science Quarterly
Table of ContentsLIST OF FIGURES ix LIST OF TABLES xi PREFACE xiii CHAPTER 1: Kindred Votes:An Introduction 1 CHAPTER 2: A Theory of Agenda Voting 15 CHAPTER 3: Studying Agendas and Direct Legislation in U.S. Elections 32 CHAPTER 4: Ballot Measures and Congressional Election Agendas 42 CHAPTER 5: Priming the Freeze: Nuclear Freeze Ballot Measures as a Common Basis of Candidate Voting in State and Federal Elections 61 CHAPTER 6: Taking the Initiative: Illegal Immigrants, Affirmative Action, and Strategic Politicians in California's 1994 and 1996 Elections 91 CHAPTER 7: Direct Democracy: The People's Agenda? 132 NOTES 141 REFERENCES 149 INDEX 165
